Field of the Invention
This invention relates to punch press assemblies and more particularly to a keeper plate arrangement to enable quick set-up and alignment of both or either a center punch holder plate on an upper portion of the punch press and an opposed die plate on a lower portion of the punch press, to permit very quickly changed, accurate alignment arrangements to facilitate the alignment of opposing tools utilized to pierce a sheet of material such as for example in a punch press, and is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 15/530,236, filed Dec. 14, 2016 which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 14/544,416, filed Jan. 2, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,561,534, issued on Feb. 7, 2015, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 12/924,139, filed Sep. 21, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,925,435, which was a co-pending application of application Ser. No. 12/214,924 filed Jun. 24, 2008 and application Ser. No. 11/450,526 filed Jun. 9, 2006, each incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Discussion of the Prior Art
Compound tooling is currently utilized by hundreds of manufacturers to produce thousands of different types of washers made from aluminum, brass, copper, nylon, steel utilized in almost everything society touches. Washers are for example, utilized in any product with nuts and bolts or moving parts. The inside diameter and the outside diameter of these washers or other punched parts have become more critical and significant for use in the manufacture of high-quality precision devices.
Prior art tool and die sets arrangements require as much as several hours to change a punch tool and a die tool. Such procedures may comprise removal of the die from the press, washing the die, take out the dowels and screws, surface grind the punches and dies, re-assemble and re-install all into the punch press. Accuracy of alignment between the punch and die is critical to an effective punch press operation. However, too much time in set up and tool change damages productivity and plant efficiency.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a tool set in which the punch and die members are quickly and easily changed with different sets of tools while permitting their accurate re-alignment.